Dundalk's European adventures have captured the imagination. The next step is to wonder what the likes of Ciaran Kilduff or Robbie Benson could do if given the chance on the international stage.
But will they ever get the chance? Some quarters have criticised O'Neill for continually overlooking Dundalk - the only League of Ireland member in his recent squads is Dundalk's keeper Gary Rogers.
Daryl Horgan is one player who pundits think should be in the squad, with Kevin Kilbane arguing that he could be involved ahead of Aiden McGeady - and Horgan himself thinks that there are some of his team could do a job with Ireland:
There are definitely a few names that Martin could pull from our squad who could be in or about the squad. But he knows far more about the game than I do and he has been a brilliant manager for as long as he’s managed, so I wouldn’t try to
second-guess him.If players from the League of Ireland get a chance, they can show they are up for it.
O'Neill, for his part, has given his reasons for why he isn't picking any Dundalk players. According to the Ireland manager, he doesn't want to remove their key players from their squad when all hands on deck are needed. The club is in unchartered waters, and he argues that they need their players during their European adventure. It's very rare for an international manager to be so considerate of a club.
It remains to be seen whether O'Neill is being serious, or is just keeping Dundalk's players at bay - but they will be playing long past the League of Ireland season in Europe - so any match practise they could get with Ireland might be useful.
[Sunday Times]
